Real Madrid just dey return back to their home ground, di Santiago Bernabeu, with one heavy bag wey no sweet at all. Di bag contain di painful elimination from di UEFA Champions League plus four straight matches wey dem no win. For LaLiga, dem dey nine points behind Barcelona with just seven games remain. Di mathematics still dey make dream possible, but di real margin for error don almost finish. Di next home match no go happen again until May 14. All dis things make di clash tonight against Alavés turn to something wey pass just three points. E be di first response from di team for their home front after dem fall for Munich.
E go be di first test in front of their own fans wey don dey whistle their own players dis season. Dem fans go enter di stadium with di pain of di elimination still fresh for body. No matter how di team compete for Allianz Arena, no matter how di red card affect di match, Real Madrid fall for both legs and dem just comot from di competition. Di Bernabeu sabi am. And dem go demand answers.
Coach Arbeloa no fit allow another stumble for domestic league. Him talk clear say, “Seven matches remain and we must win all seven.” Dat na declaration of intention wey dey force di team to show against Alavés di same intensity wey dem show—even if late—for di moments of maximum European pressure.
Dem don recover Tchouaméni, wey get suspension against Bayern. Him dey return to di midfield axis together with Valverde and Arda Güler, wey be di team best player for Munich with him two goals. Carreras go enter for Mendy for di left-back position. Di doubt dey for di fourth midfielder: Bellingham, Thiago, or Brahim. For attack, Vinicius and Mbappé, dem be di ones wey people dey point finger at after di elimination. Dem need one match wey go shut mouth.
Without Courtois, without Rodrygo, and without Asencio—dis last one still dey recover from bacterial gastroenteritis wey make am lose weight and training—di starting eleven no get big new things compare to Munich. But di attitude must change.
Di opponent dey come with their own serious matter. Dem dey just one point from relegation zone. Di Alavés of Quique Sánchez Flores dey carry four matches without loss—di best streak of di season—and dem dey see di mental situation of Madrid as opportunity. Dem no go come to speculate.
Sánchez Flores don recover Lucas Boyé after him plantar fasciitis. Toni Martínez, with three goals and one assist for di last three matches, na di main offensive reference and di biggest threat to di white defence. Di Basque team sabi say Chamartín dey wounded and dem go come with everything.
Di Bernabeu go get one reason to applaud before di whistle blow: di tribute to di youth team wey conquer di UEFA Youth League yesterday for Lausanne, with Javi Navarro as star—five penalties saved between semi-final and final—and wey even enter today’s first-team squad list. Na small detail of pride wey di stadium go appreciate.
But after dat, na football. And di football dey demand from Arbeloa’s Madrid one performance wey dey worthy of wetin di badge represent. To win Alavés no go save di season. To lose or draw go sink am completely.
Possible line-up for Real Madrid against Alavés (4-4-2) na: Andriy Lunin; Ferland Mendy, Antonio Rüdiger, Éder Militão, Trent Alexander-Arnold; Arda Güler, Federico Valverde, Jude Bellingham, Brahim Diaz; Vinicius and Kylian Mbappe.
Possible line-up for Alavés against Real Madrid (5-3-2) na: Antonio Sivera; Abderrahman Rebbach, Víctor Parada, Nahuel Tenaglia, Jonny Otto, Ángel Pérez; Jon Guridi, Antonio Blanco, Pablo Ibañez; Ibrahim Diabate and Toni Martinez.
Di Merengue team just say goodbye to UEFA Champions League last Wednesday after losing 4-3 for their visit to Bayern Munich for di return leg of di quarter-finals. Now dem must focus 100% on LaLiga. Dem dey nine points behind FC Barcelona and dem sabi say no more margin dey if dem still dream to lift di trophy.
For dis match, di coach no go fit count on Raúl Asencio, Thibaut Courtois, and Rodrygo.
Di team from Mendizorroza reach dis match just one point from di relegation zone and dem need to win to move away from Elche, wey for dis hour be di best positioned of di teams wey go lose category. Dem don get big away performances, like di 4-3 victory for Balaídos against Celta de Vigo, so dem dey allow themselves to dream.
For dis encounter, Quique Sánchez Flores no go have Facundo Garcés and Carlos Protesoni available.
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